Anderson .Paak retells picking up the drums, writing the song “Suede,” an unfortunate blind date, and more on First Times

Clicking with the Free Nationals the first time definitely ended in a drunk stupor.

Anderson .Paak operates on his own schedule. Instead of constantly competing with others artists' output, he tends to take his time with his projects to allow himself and his fans to live with the music and let it breathe. Fans were placated most recently with his Oxnard album, dedicated to his birthplace in California.

The FADER invited .Paak to come by the studio to take a look back at his humble beginnings on the drums at a church, the first memorable job he had, and a blind date to Olive Garden that ended before it even started. He ends his trip down memory lane with the first time he knew he could rock with the Free Nationals and the story behind creating "Suede" off of his Yes Lawd! album with Knxwledge.